Expats optimistic about safety in Guangzhou

We recently interviewed four foreigners who have been living in Guangzhou for a long time. They shared their views on public security in the city and also give suggestions.

Qiao Alang: Guangzhou is friendly and inclusive

Qiao Alang, from Kazakhstan, has lived in Guangzhou for 12 years. He is studying for a doctorate at a university in the city.

Qiao Alang being interviewed

Qiao expressed his satisfaction at living in Guangzhou. He reckons Guangzhou to be a friendly and inclusive city, and believes it will only get better. Compared with the high number of violent crimes in some other cities and other countries, Guangzhou remains a good level of public security. In recent years, the notion of ‘harmony’ has come to the fore in Chinese culture, so more violent conflict tends to be avoided. Although of course the city still sees petty crimes committed, Qiao thinks it is nothing out of the ordinary, because conflict can never be completely avoided in any place with such a large community.

An American teacher in Guangzhou: transport needs improvement

Hasson comes from Illinois, United States and has lived in China for ten years. He now works as a university teacher in Guangzhou. He has witnessed the enormous development and changes Guangzhou has experiences over the past decade.

Hasson mentioned that Guangzhou could still improve its traffic management. He has noticed some vehicles still go against the flow of traffic. “So sometimes you really do not know which is the correct way to go!” Hasson said, “And you always have to be careful of the bicycles and motorbikes driving in the opposite direction to the traffic”.

Hasson also suggested that the service hour of Guangzhou Metro should be extended to midnight.